Traces the parallel stories of nineteenth-century art patron Charles Ephrussi and his unique collection of 360 miniature netsuke Japanese ivory carvings, documenting Ephrussi's relationship with Marcel Proust and the impact of the Holocaust on his cosmopolitan family.

From Robert Hughes, one of the greatest art and cultural critics of our time, comes a sprawling, comprehensive, and deeply personal history of Rome—as city, as empire, and, crucially, as an origin of Western art and civilization, two subjects about which Hughes has spent his life writing and thinking.

A comprehensive history of the papacy describes the defining relevance of papal authority to the Church, chronicling the unexpectedly violent and colorful historical events that have indelibly shaped the Pope's authority and station.

NPR

Speaking Volumes is a weekly conversation on books and reading. The program airs on 90.5 FM Mondays during Morning Edition, and Wednesdays during Essential Pittsburgh.